


Tea Time With The Theory Dads

by YrdTheNerd



Category: BomBARDed (Podcast)
Genre: Gen, I dunno I just needed this, Just some dads hanging out, Mostly fluff?, Orfell being Orfell, Theory Dads
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-13
Updated: 2019-11-13
Packaged: 2021-01-30 02:42:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,257
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21420877
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YrdTheNerd/pseuds/YrdTheNerd
Summary: While the bards are away, the dads- will chat about their progress, their previous adventures, and ultimately jam out. After another tea time, Orfell decides to go on a big adventure of his own- without telling anyone, of course.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 4





	Tea Time With The Theory Dads

**Author's Note:**

> Wowie, my first BomBARDed fic on AO3! I've written a few short things before but this one is probably the longest I have done for this fandom so far. I hope you enjoy! I tried my hardest to keep it close to canon as I could.

The afternoon was a bit chilly as the beginnings of autumn started to nip at the edges of the summer, starting to give away to the colours of the fall as trees started to turn and more and more people were putting on more layers.

_The perfect time for tea._

Within the confines of Symbol’s office, two men sat across a table, exchanging warm conversations. Orfell and Symbol had these ‘tea times’ set up for every time the two happened to be in or around the school for sometime after the first time they met, finding each other’s company to be refreshing. It turned from a parent-teacher interview situation to two friends who gave the impression of knowing each other a lot longer than they did. Symbol gave him an Ira glass after their first meeting, just for the sake of the man keeping in touch with his daughter. 

Their main topic? Incidentally, Chaos Sauce themselves.

Orfell couldn’t stop talking about his daughter, so Symbol would obviously steer their conversation towards his students, sharing his spin on the tales his bards tell him and his own experiences with the three. It never seemed to get old between the two and when the conversation lulled, it was a never-ending supply of amusement. The two could talk about them and laugh until their sides hurt, or until they could see the sunset approaching and their tea was cold.

Well, the cold tea was common. The two of them could chat- and play- up a storm. Their afternoons together were filled with so much chatter and jamming out that they should really not call it tea time.

One day between their conversations, it was brought up how Chaos Sauce first began.

  
“Well, as you may know, Raz’ul needed new strings. That was their first assignment.” Symbol commented, sipping on his cold tea and his face turning to a bit of disgust from the unappealing taste. “They ended up at the Punch Bowl, and hearing from a man named Wesley, they set out for Silkgrove.”

“Silkgrove, eh?” Orfell echoed, leaning forward. He waved his hand in the air, indicating for Symbol to continue. 

“Yeah, and the man gave him some magical string. From a spider, if I recall correctly. Turns out this Wesley guy was trying to trap them too in the cave system he had attached his home to. When he couldn’t trap them, he apparently ran away and left everything behind. Honestly, if I was Raz’ul I would have at least asked for spare strings of some sort.”

  
“So he just left everything there? Just in Silkgrove?”

Symbol nodded, getting up to get a new cup of tea, one that would be hot- and some pudding. “As far as I know.” He commented, pulling his drawer open. He made his way back to seat just in time to watch Orfell take a sip of his own tea and frown.  
  


“Well, that’s mighty interesting. Hey, did I ever tell you I actually played at the Punch Bowl?”  
  


“Oh really now?” Symbol egged him on, smiling happily as he took a sip of tea.  
  


Of course, Orfell was fibbing a bit, but it was all in good fun. Symbol ate his pudding contently as Orfell weaved a tale of his performance at the Punch Bowl, making various different hand gestures as he did. 

They continued on talking before eventually, they got back onto music theory, slipping into their usual chatter. It was always such a natural flow between conversations between the two. Their chaotic yet proper balance was highly unlikely to have happened, but they just clicked.

“How about we just jam out, for old time’s sake?” Orfell suggested, already reaching for his bass.

“What do you mean for old time’s sake?” Symbol chuckled, for their last jam session was just last week. Still, he started to get up and make his way towards his instruments.

“You know what I mean. I am just itching to play!” Orfell started to get up, prepared to play.

And Symbol followed suit.  
  


Eventually, as the sun went down, the two started their long farewells. With a hug, a smile, and a wave, Orfell left Symbol’s office to head out and get some rest.  
  


* * *

And then Orfell seemed to drop off the face of existence. 

It was an odd experience for Symbol, for Orfell did travel a lot and didn’t call him as much as he called Yashee, but it was still a bit odd not to get the regular call he did from Orfell that followed up with their time together expressing how much fun he had. It was quite endearing, so it’s absence was noted. 

The only time Symbol actually became worried was a couple of days later. He was sitting in his office when there was a knock on his door. 

“Uh, Splash? Got a second?” The door was pushed ajar, Raz’ul’s head sticking through the door. 

“It’s Symbol. But, Yeah sure Raz, please come in.” Symbol straightened himself up, sorting his papers together. Raz’ul opened the door, revealing the rest of Chaos Sauce. Yashee was wringing her hands, a clearly worried expression on her face. Randy seemed rather neutral compared to her, but that was just Randy in general.  
  


“What’s up?” Symbol’s eyes darted between Raz’ul and Yashee, mirroring Yashee’s concern. 

Raz’ul opened his mouth, but Yashee was quicker. “Have you heard from my dad? He usually calls at least twice a day but he hasn’t since his visit.” 

Symbol paused. “No I haven’t.” Watching Yashee get even more concerned, he added, “Why don’t you sit down? Come in, we can figure this out.” The half-orc followed the order, sitting down. Randy and Raz’ul sat on either side of her, Raz’ul lightly rubbing Yashee’s forearm in comforting circles. The poor girl looked like she was about to cry. 

  
“Maybe he just misplaced his Ira glass?”

“No, when I try to call him it does seem to pick up, but I can’t hear anything.” Yashee was glancing around the room, her fingers now drumming a beat on the arms of her chair. “It’s gotta be close enough to him, right?”  
  


“Maybe he’s just asleep when you’re calling!” Raz’ul interjected. Symbol nodded.

“Maybe, but that still doesn’t excuse how he hasn’t called me when he wasn’t asleep,” Yashee let out an exasperated sigh.

Symbol stared at the three with them, his lip is a tight line. He ran a hand through his hair, trying to figure out what could have happened. “This is certainly stressing, especially on you Yashee. How about we try giving him another call now?”

Before his bards could agree, he was already pulling out his Ira glass. He whispered Orfell’s name into it and waited briefly. It seemed to pick up, but it sounded mostly like white noise. He put his ear right to it, hearing the faintest of scuttling.  
  


“Have you guys tried to amply it yet? It seems to be that he is trying to pick up, but can’t?”

“We would, but we were told to not do it again… what if it explodes and we lose this contact for good?”

“That is true… hmm... How about the view-do doll?”  
  


“We don’t have anything of his.”  
  


Symbol leaned into his chair, his face contorting to a troubled expression. He was now trying to recall the things that he and Orfell talked about during his most recent visit. They had their usual chatter, catching up and-

No, no he wouldn’t do _ that _\- would he? He wouldn’t-

No, _he totally would_.

“Silkgrove,” Symbol murmured, his face lighting up with the realization, and then turning back into a troubled expression. “I think he’s in Silkgrove. I mentioned where you got your strings, Raz’ul, and he seemed keen. But I didn’t think he’d go there.”  
  


“That place is still infested with spiders, we gotta get going!” Yashee jumped to her feet, her worry switched with determination.  
  


Symbol paused. “Are you sure? What if he isn’t there?”  
  


“Then we keep looking!"

The teacher looked over his youngest student, realizing that this call to action was the only thing keeping her from worrying more and more. He nodded. “In this case, I’m coming with you. You might need an extra pair of hands if you’re going there with rescue on your mind.” Raz’ul seemed particularly excited when he said that, and Randy’s eyebrow raised.  
  


“Got it! Let’s go!” Yashee was already making her way towards the door, pulling it open.

“We’ll meet by the stables in thirty minutes, okay?” He called after her, but she was already out of sight. He looked to Raz’ul and Randy. “You two can relay that message, right?”

“You got it Splash.” Randy got up, calmly walking out. Raz’ul just gave a thumbs up and followed in suit, not wanting to lose their bandmate. 

“It’s Symbol.” He muttered, already starting to pack his things. 

* * *

The ride to Silkgrove was unusually tense, with the three bards sitting in the back and Symbol in the front. They had not told Mitch about their excursion, their wagon trotting down the dusty path in unsettling silence.

Symbol could hear Chaos Sauce muttering, but he wouldn’t pry right now. What mattered was getting to Slikgrove quickly. When they neared the area Symbol slowed down.  
  


“I think we are near. Do you guys remember what Wesley’s house looks like?” Symbol asked as he swung the back open, peering his head in. The three bards were awake, seemingly already alert. 

“I can drive Splash, I’ve done it before,” Yashee said, already stepping out of the wagon. Before Symbol could say anything, she was glancing around- clearly getting bearings on where they were- and pointed in a direction. “I’m pretty sure we are not too far off, I think that way.”  
  


Raz’ul, who had joined his bardbarian friend, nodded in agreement. “That seems about right.” he hummed, patting Yashee’s arm. She seemed to perk up, moving towards the driver’s seat.

Symbol gestured to the druid to join her. With their slightly rearranged seatings, it took a few more minutes of going around, but they eventually pulled to another stop. The four regrouped in front of what was Wesley’s house. They all approached slowly, Symbol staring down the house with quizzical eyes. 

“Is there any chance it’s locked?”  
  


Randy nodded. “We got locked up in there and found another way out.”  
  


“We should probably take that other way then.”

Raz’ul led the way towards a hovel by the house, waving the others over. “It’s still just as accessible,” he said with joy in his tone. He started to make his way down into the caverns. Symbol slowly pulled out his book, starting to take small notes of the area. It was interesting to see an area he had not previously seen, but his students have.

  
As they made their descent and passed more than a few odd rooms, they got past some cages and paused. “This is where it gets more dangerous,” Yashee commented, starting to take the front of the pack. Symbol readied himself, not knowing what to expect. The four marched on, on high alert.

  
They got to an area with a large amount of webbing and started to slow down, being careful not to hit some thicker patches after Randy recounted what happened when he poked them last time.

But something in the dark cavern was making noise, and Raz’ul promptly hushed the halfling. “You guys hear that, right? It sounds like it’s just up ahead.”

It sounded like… something muffled. 

Yashee quickened her pace towards it, before shouting. “Dad!”

This, of course, made the other three speed up in response.

There, on the wall, was Orfell. He was suspended on the wall by thick webbing, all but his face completely covered. When Yashee spoke up, the muffled sound amplified, and they found that up to his nose was plastered down, keeping his head pinned against the wall, and his mouth not visible.

  
  
As soon as they got around him, you could see him visibly calm. His eyes softened, and he was clearly smiling despite not being able to see his mouth.

  
  
“Hold on, we’re gonna get you down!” Yashee shouted, looking at the others for some help.

  
  
“_Bard tower_!” Raz’ul exclaimed, already starting to scramble up to Yashee’s shoulders. Randy followed suit, sitting on top of Raz’ul’s shoulders. They all bared their weapons, staring to hack away carefully yet urgently. Symbol meanwhile watched around the scenery, starting to go through his bag and pull out things that Orfell may need. Mostly just food and water- who knows how long his friend has been here?

Something began to disturb in the distance. “Bards, you better hurry, or we might have company.” He relayed to the others. They let out small affirmative grunts, clearly working away.

Symbol prepared himself for any hostile spiders with his bow, letting out a small huff. Why couldn’t this be easy?  
  
Then again, nothing ever is. 

He glanced over his shoulder just in time to see Orfell start to peel off the wall, Randy and Raz’ul now holding onto his mostly limp frame as the got the rest of the webbing detached from him. There was a couple things that he caught at a glimpse:

Orfell brought along his bass and a small bag, which were both being slowly cut down alongside him. But most importantly,

He had his Ira glass in hand.

Symbol frowned. The poor man must have been trying to pick up the calls, but even if he could, he couldn’t speak. He was probably planning to call for help or something, but couldn’t before he ended up stuck to the wall. When they finally got him completely off, they lowered him to the ground with the utmost care. The bard tower disassembled, and Yashee quickly kneeled next to her dad, helping him remove the webbing over his mouth.

The first thing Orfell did was take a deep breath, nearly gasping for air, before throwing his arms around Yashee. “Oh, little spoon! Thank goodness!”  
  


Symbol indicated to the food. “Raz’ul, Randy, give him some food, please. I imagine he needs it.” Symbol spoke calmly, but Orfell honestly sounded so tired that Symbol was worried he’d just fall over any second and he didn’t want Yashee to freak out. Raz’ul and Randy brought over the food and water, offering it to the human man that was still resting in Yashee’s arms.

Symbol kept a lookout, only to see something starting to stir and get out of its little webbing cocoon. “We have company now.” He reported, readying his bow.

Raz’ul and Randy turned around. “Yashee, you stay with your dad. We got this.” Raz’ul said, preparing for a fight.  
  


“You don’t need to tell me twice, but if you need any help, let me know,” Yashee said. She was cradling her dad, who was now quickly downing some water and munching on some bread.

Orfell smiled up at his daughter. “How did you guys find me?”

  
  
“Oh, Splash figured that one out.” She gestured towards her teacher.

“It wasn’t that hard, really. You seemed really enthused about Silkgrove. Honestly, I should have figured it out the moment you left,” Symbol replied, his eyes trained on the moving patch in the distance. He earned a lighthearted yet tired sounding chuckle from Orfell. 

“Well yeah, who wouldn’t be by the idea of magical strings?” Orfell replied, finishing off the bread and moving onto an apple. 

“Uh… they’ll be plenty of time to talk on our way back. We should get out of here first.” 

Almost as soon as the words left Randy’s lips, a phase spider crawled out of its nest and seemed to turn in their direction. It clearly spotted them, making it’s way over.

Raz’ul swung his axe down, glancing around him before beginning the strummings of a spell.

Symbol took aim, and only briefly catching a glimpse of Randy hiding behind him and readying his bow. He fired, lodging an arrow in a joint of the spider’s legs.

Randy followed suit, firing at another joint, and fortunately, hit the target. 

As the spider approached, Raz’ul started to play more intensely, casting a thunderwave in the spider’s direction. It was blown back, before disappearing altogether. 

The three of them tensed, keeping their eyes open and moving into a defensive position. Randy pulled out his dagger, and Raz’ul switched how he was holding his axe. The three of them circled around Orfell and Yashee slightly, standing a few feet away from each other. 

From the left, the spider reappeared, lunging at Randy and knocking him over. The three of them jumped and on an instant were on the offensive. Randy stabbed at the creature, while Symbol moved backwards and Raz’ul moved towards, swinging his axe like a baseball bat and lodging the axe into the spider’s side. 

The spider collapsed, going limp on top of Randy. The three of them took a breath, Symbol lowering his bow and dusting himself off. 

After a calming moment, Randy looked up at the other two. “Can you please get this thing off of me?” He chucked a bit.

“Oh! Uh, yeah!”

Raz’ul helped the halfling out, using his axe to move the spider off. 

Symbol made his way over to Yashee and Orfell. “We should get going, so we don’t have to deal with more spiders.” Yashee nodded in agreement, getting up and carrying her father. Orfell didn’t mention that he could walk himself but instead relaxed against his daughter.

Symbol picked up the leftovers and put the things back in his bag, also throwing Orfell’s bag over his shoulder. He watched Raz’ul pick up Orfell’s bass, being careful with the instrument. The five of them stealthily made their way out of the cavern, trying to make sure that they didn’t alert any other spiders of their presence. 

As soon as they were out of the hovel, the five of them let out a collective breath. Fortunately, their wagon was still outside, and they quickly made their way over, glad their mission was finished so quickly. “Thank you guys, really, thank you. I really thought it’d be worth it to try and get some strings myself. Almost ended up some spider grub!”

Orfell let out another tired chuckle. 

“No problem Mr. Bo- Orfell!” Raz’ul replied, reaching up to pat him on the shoulder. 

“Yeah, anytime.”

Orfell offered a smile to chaos sauce. Yashee walked over to the wagon, sitting down Orfell in the back. “You need some rest, you should on our way back.” She commented, which received a curt nod.  
  
“Yes, we can talk when we get back after you have recovered a bit.” Symbol commented, poking his head into the back of the wagon. 

Getting a good look at Orfell now, you could clearly tell he was a little worse for wear. He looked tired and still a little pale, a bit banged up and dirty. He, despite looking like a complete mess, was beaming. He still had warm eyes and a joyful carefree energy around him like usual, as if nothing could break that aspect about him. 

Orfell would always be Orfell.

“Okay bards, in the back!” Symbol gestured as he made his way to the front to take the reins. He took his position in the driver’s seat, while Chaos Sauce and Orfell were in the back. Their ride this time was much less tense and much more jovial. 

_ … Now to apologize to Mitch about stealing his wagon. _

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know what you thought! It would mean a lot to me to get any sort of feedback!


End file.
